US: The End of the Internetby Jeffrey Chester, The NationFebruary 6th, 2006The nation's largest telephone and cable companies are crafting an alarming set of strategies that would transform the free, open and nondiscriminatory Internet of today to a privately run and branded service that would charge a fee for virtually everything we do online.

MIDDLE EAST: Firms feel pain of people powerby Robert Plummer, BBC NewsFebruary 3rd, 2006The backlash throughout the Muslim world against a series of Danish cartoons caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad is having a severe impact on at least one prominent business in Denmark.

US: Wal-Mart's Musical Movesby Abigail Goldman and Charles Duhigg, Los Angeles TimesJanuary 26th, 2006This latest example of Wal-Mart's "direct procurement" approach continues the company's practice of upending the traditional relationship between the makers of goods and those who sell them.
The deal has some in the recording industry alarmed at the thought of Wal-Mart's establishing direct partnerships with musicians and cutting out the labels. And it may just be the start.

US: Disney Paid Eisner $10.1 Million in '05Associated PressJanuary 12th, 2006Michael D. Eisner, former chief executive of the Walt Disney Company, received $10.1 million in compensation last year, including a $9.1 million cash bonus, according to the company's annual proxy statement filed Wednesday.

IRAQ: Pentagon Paid Sunni Clerics To Aid Propaganda Effortby David S. Cloud and Jeff Gerth, The New York TimesJanuary 2nd, 2006A Pentagon contractor that paid Iraqi newspapers to print positive articles written by American soldiers has also been compensating Sunni religious scholars in Iraq in return for assistance with its propaganda work, according to current and former employees.